You've likely seen the buzz on social media or heard it from a friend: Lagree is everywhere. The workout, known for its intense, full-body burn on a machine called the Megaformer, has become a go-to for celebrities including Nicole Kidman and Gwyneth Paltrow, as well as the many models wearing the latest leggings, gazelling through studios from West Hollywood to Brentwood. But according to creator Sebastien Lagree, the method's rise in popularity is due to more than its fast work in sculpting a perfect physique—it's about a fundamental shift in how America is approaching wellness.

I sat down with Lagree to get him to tell me what makes his method different from the Pilates body quest and other trending workouts, and why its emphasis on functional fitness is what today's population is looking for. I’m a fan of the class, having taken a few classes in Los Angeles.

I Survived Lagree, the Super-Hard Workout Craze in Los Angeles. Here’s My Review

Lagree vs. Pilates: The Core Differences

While many people assume Lagree is just a more intense form of Pilates due to the similar-looking machine, Lagree says this is a common misconception. True, Lagree uses a spring-loaded Megaformer, while Pilates uses a similarly pulley-rigged Reformer, but there are techical differences in the machines themselves, as well as the exercises performed on them. "Lagree was never based on Pilates," he explains. The key difference, he says, is the foundational philosophy behind each workout.

"The biggest difference is Lagree is rooted in bodybuilding training techniques, and Pilates is not," Lagree states. He notes that key bodybuilding principles like “time under tension” and progressive overload are central to his method but are not mentioned in Joseph Pilates's book, Contrology. (Time under tension refers to the amount of time, usually measure in seconds, when a muscle is working hard during an exercise set; progressive overload means gradually adding volume, intensity, frequency or time of muscle work to reach an outcome.) By contrast, when you take a Pilates teacher training, you'll hear a lot of ballet terms like "first position" and "relevé," which are a nod to its history of rehabbing dancers.

Lagree's initial clients were not dancers recovering from injuries but actresses and models who were already in peak physical condition and wanted to sculpt their bodies without bulking up. "I had to really use my knowledge of body sculpting and then create this workout," he says. This difference in clientele and philosophy led to two distinct outcomes. While both methods are low-impact, Pilates is often focused on rehabilitation, whereas Lagree is designed for muscle tightening and toning.